Novell Honors Top Global Training Partners

WALTHAM, Mass., Sept. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Reflecting the importance of training in promoting Linux* adoption worldwide, Novell(R) is honoring its top Linux training partners for their success in driving Linux education, designating them Linux Centers of Excellence. These partners, which include companies across Novell's major geographic markets, delivered rapid growth in students trained, top ratings for the quality of their Linux instructors, and high marks for customer satisfaction. Customers seeking hands-on Linux training in their local markets can turn to these partners with confidence that they will receive enterprise-quality Linux education.

"Novell has enabled Linux to go from the back alleys of organizations to the front lines of mainstream computing infrastructure, not only with their world-class products but also with their outstanding training ecosystem," said Chris Clark, president of SwitchDesk, a Linux solutions vendor headquartered in Nashville, Tenn. "The audience for our Novell-based Linux training continues to grow, especially with globally recognizable companies, and this award verifies that our commitment to Linux is producing outstanding results. With Novell, there is no limit to what we can do on Linux."

While Novell already has the largest training ecosystem of any Linux distributor, with hundreds of authorized training partners worldwide, the Linux Center of Excellence is a new, elite designation Novell is limiting to its top 25 Linux partners. These companies were selected based on year-over- year growth in the number of students they trained on Linux, as well as evaluation scores for their instructors delivering Novell's authorized Linux courses. All partners receiving the Linux Center of Excellence title received top satisfaction scores from their students for their overall Linux instruction.

"This accolade demonstrates the commitment from everyone at QA InterQuad, particularly our trainers, to ensure the highest quality delivery of Novell training in the United Kingdom," said Bill Cosgrave, business development manager for QA InterQuad. "We are pleased to play our part in driving the growing market for Linux training and certifications and consider expansion in this market as crucial our continued success. Novell's constant innovation in technology and certifications enables us to stay at the sharp end for quality and relevant training delivery."

The 25 global Linux Centers of Excellence named by Novell are: Americas

-- Alphatech - North Carolina

-- GCA - Florida

-- Intech - New York

-- INTGI - New York

-- ISInc - California

-- Netlan - New York

-- New Horizons Minnesota - Minnesota

-- New Horizons Salt Lake - Utah

-- Riverhead - Pennsylvania

-- SwitchDesk - Tennessee Europe

-- Altea Service - France

-- Compendium Centrum Edukacyjne - Poland

-- Computrain EDV Training - Germany

-- Indigo Communications Services - Austria

-- QA Interquad - UK

-- IT Integrated Data - Switzerland

-- LANworks - Germany

-- Newlevel.nl Educenter - Netherlands

-- The Campus - Germany

-- Traicen Computer Training and Consulting - Germany

-- Tria IT Training - Germany

-- Walton System House - Hungary Asia/Pacific

-- Avantus Training - Singapore

-- EXCOM Education - Australia

-- Lien-Cheng Computer, Inc. - Taiwan

"EXCOM is honored to have been recognized in this way on a global level, as it reflects the outstanding effort & dedication of our team to provide leading world-class technical training on Linux," Paul Koukounaras, managing director of Australia's EXCOM Education. "The company is firmly committed to maintaining the highest levels of expertise across all major platforms in use by our clients and meeting all their technical training needs. The increased interest in Linux training and certification is strategically important to our business and reinforces our ongoing commitment and partnership with Novell and our Linux customer base."

Daniel Veitkus, vice president of training services for Novell, said, "This special Authorized Training Partner designation was based on the growth in students trained on Linux as well as the quality of service provided - instructor effectiveness, courseware quality and overall training experience - as measured by our student satisfaction surveys. We are recognizing the best of class partners who have delivered demonstrable results in expanding the Linux ecosystem, driving Linux more firmly into the marketplace."

For more information on Novell and Novell partner training services, please visit http://www.novell.com/training/index.html .

About Novell

Novell, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL) delivers Software for the Open Enterprise(TM). With more than 50,000 customers in 43 countries, Novell helps customers manage, simplify, secure and integrate their technology environments by leveraging best-of-breed, open standards-based software. With more than 20 years of experience, 4,700 employees, 5,000 partners and support centers around the world, Novell helps customers gain control over their IT operating environments while reducing costs. More information about Novell can be found at http://www.novell.com .

NOTE: Novell is a registered trademark and Software for the Open Enterprise is a trademark of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries. *Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.